MONTREAL -- There have been many twists and turns to the Kerry Joseph story, high drama and stunning subplots. There have been soaring highs and depressing lows, both professionally and personally. He has ascended to the top and seemingly been down and counted out on the bottom of the scrap heap -- more than once.

Yet he has persevered, picking himself off the canvas numerous times.

"I could have shut it down if things didn't work out. Sometimes life deals you a bad hand and you still have to play that hand. And make it work," Joseph said in a telephone interview this week. "You're going to have setbacks."

It's hard to know where to begin, but a good starting point would be 2007, when the veteran quarterback passed for 4,000 yards and 24 touchdowns -- but also rushed for 737 and 13 more scores -- leading Saskatchewan to only its third Grey Cup championship in franchise history. For this, Joseph was named the Canadian Football League's outstanding player.

Four months later, he was traded to Toronto and, two years after that, was released outright by the Argonauts. He went almost a full season without playing before signing with Edmonton as a free agent in October 2010. Released two months later, he was working as a personal trainer in Louisiana -- the football train apparently having reached the end of the line.

Re-signed by the Eskimos the following season, Joseph has pulled yet one more rabbit out of the hat, becoming the team's starter following an injury to Steven Jyles. Oh yeah, and Joseph turned 39 on Oct. 4.

It has been an inspirational comeback story Joseph has crafted, and it's not yet done. Edmonton, 7-9, can clinch a playoff berth with a victory over the Alouettes at Molson Stadium Sunday afternoon. Make the post-season, especially as a potential crossover team that would meet whichever club finishes second in the East pision, and anything's possible.

"You know what, I've been through a lot in my career," Joseph said, no animosity evident in his voice. "I've had a blessed career so far, but I've been through some adversity. I look at what I went through after helping the Roughriders win a Grey Cup, and being traded. I felt there wasn't a lot of respect for my work on the field. It has served as a sense of inspiration. If you have a desire and dream -- and work hard enough -- no one can take that away from you.

"In the business that we're in, people sometimes don't give you the credit for things you do on the field," he added. "Production can't be ignored, it can only be hated. God put me through this path to make me a better person."

The two constants in his Canadian career have been Eric Tillman and Kavis Reed. Tillman, the Eskimos' general manager, brought Joseph to the CFL with Ottawa in 2003. Reed, now the Eskimos' head coach, was an assistant with the Renegades and Argonauts.

Tillman has always raved about Joseph's athletic ability.

"When injuries created a starting opportunity this year, he's been playing like a much younger quarterback," Tillman said. "Kerry was a guy who was going to seize the moment when it came. It did come, after Steven was hurt, and Kerry's played very, very well for our club as a starter.

"Kerry's gifted genetically. Blessed," Tillman continued. "But his work ethic's off the charts, too. He places a huge emphasis on nutrition, conditioning and film work. As such, 39 is just a number. But right now ... with the way Kerry's playing, it doesn't matter if he's 29 or 39."

The six-foot, 215-pounder seemed to be a can't-miss prospect coming out of McNeese State, leading the school to a 42-11 record over four seasons. He was the Southland Conference player of the year as a senior in 1995. When his collegiate career ended, he had passed for nearly 8,000 yards, rushing for close to another 2,000.

And yet he went undrafted, signing with Cincinnati as a free agent. He tried out for Washington as a slotback, failing to make the team. In 1998, Seattle converted him to safety and he dressed for 54 NFL games, intercepting three passes along with a quarterback sack.

And then after the Seahawks released him, his marriage of four years ended. So he returned home to Louisiana, coaching high school and playing flag football. Joseph was "discovered" there by Tillman, with some assistance from Mike Santiago, Joseph's former offensive co-ordinator at college and one of Tillman's old coaching friends.

"You can't live in the past, but you can learn from the past," Joseph said. "When you go through pain in life, it makes you stronger. When you go through trial and tribulations and you persevere, it builds character. It makes you stronger. Use that fire to motivate you.

"A long time ago I could have given up and said it's not worth it. But I'm not wired that way."

With Ottawa in 2005, the final year of the team's existence, Joseph became only the third CFL quarterback -- after Damon Allen and Tracy Ham -- to rush for more than 1,000 yards. But there was a contract dispute following the Riders' title, leading to his departure. Joseph said he felt betrayed, insulted by the team's lack of loyalty. Coincidentally, it was Tillman who pulled the trigger on the trade.

The years in Toronto were tumultuous, Joseph discovering a pided locker. Some players backed Michael Bishop, who had gone 11-1 as a starter. Others sided with Joseph. He passed for only 2,244 yards in 2009, along with 10 touchdowns. But Joseph was intercepted 16 times. When Jim Barker arrived as head coach in 2010, Joseph's days were numbered.

Following his first abbreviated stint with Edmonton, Joseph was working as a personal trainer at the Cross Gates Athletic Club in Slidell, La. That should have been the end of the story.

"Picking up the phone, calling the people that you know and getting rejected," Joseph remembered. "Every time I got rejected, it was a night that I went sleepless. I wanted to get up the next morning and put my work in ... find a way to get better because I knew my opportunity would come. It made me hungrier to come back and be better."

Reed, the defensive co-ordinator at Winnipeg in 2010, told Joseph if he got the Edmonton job the following season, he'd see what he could arrange. And Reed proved a man of his word.

Joseph has proven to be more than a serviceable quarterback this season, passing for 2,071 yards and 12 touchdowns. He has thrown nine interceptions while completing almost 61 per cent of his throws. He's winning games, throwing three touchdowns in a 37-20 victory against Saskatchewan earlier this month. His teammates believe in him and respect Joseph.

"People who don't respect me, that continues to motivate me. I know I'm a starting calibre quarterback," he said. "I continue to show I have the ability to lead a team and be a leading quarterback in this league.

"We only get one shot at this life. At the end of the day, I want my name to be more than my bank account. I want my name to be worth more. That's the legacy that I want to leave. If I'd have given up years ago ... I would have let my family and self down. I just couldn't do that. I want to prove those who doubt me wrong."

Nobody's certain how this latest chapter will end, although Joseph hopes to continue playing in 2013. Make the playoffs and all things are possible for a team that has lost four games by a total of six points. And does anyone really want to count Joseph out prematurely?

"With a man who has defied the odds several times before," Tillman said, "it's quite possible Kerry hasn't written the last chapter of his remarkable CFL story just yet."

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